Law School

Coursework must be submitted via the electronic drop-box for the module on Campus Moodle. Academic writing & plagiarism

Before submitting assignments, you should check through it to ensure that:

• all material identified as originally from a previously published source has been properly attributed by the inclusion of an appropriate reference in the text;
• direct quotations are marked as such (using “quotation marks” at the beginning and end of the selected

text), and

• a citation has been included in the list of references at the end of the text.

This is really important in order to demonstrate that you composed your work in your own words and that you complied with the academic standard on referencing your source material (OSCOLA). Thereby, you ensure that you avoid what the university terms as ‘plagiarism’:

Plagiarism is the practice of presenting the thoughts, writings or other output of another or others as original, without acknowledgement of their source(s). All material used to support a piece of work, whether a printed publication or from electronic media, should be appropriately identified and referenced and should not normally be copied directly unless as an acknowledged quote. Text translated into the words of the individual student should in all cases acknowledge the source.

Additionally, the Law School interprets ‘self-plagiarism’ as re-using in a coursework your own work that has previously been submitted for assessment in this or another course. It is not permitted, and this will be reflected in the mark awarded.

If you are struggling with composing your coursework, or academic writing in general, there is a lot of assistance available by the Student Advice and Support Team. For further information please see http://www.rgu.ac.uk/student-life/student-advice-and-support/study-support/academic-writing

Note on penalties, extension and deferral requests

You must include a statement on the front cover of your work that gives the word count. Adhering to the word count for coursework is an important element of the assessment criteria, as it acts as a parameter applicable for all students.

Any student who uses 10% more words than the word count will have a marking penalty applied. The penalty will be to move the work down by way of a deduction of 5% points from their mark (not 5% of the mark they have achieved). Thus work that was 65% will be reduced to 60% (not 61.75%). If the deduction takes the work below a grading threshold (i.e. A to B; B to C etc.) then the grade for that component will reflect the lower mark. Work which far exceeds the word count (that is, is far in excess of 10%) will not meet the assessment criteria and this will be reflected in the mark awarded.

Poor grammar and spelling, as well as poor referencing, can impede communication/the academic quality of your discussion, and may negatively impact on your overall mark.

Please note that coursework submitted late without prior extension is failed. If you, for genuine reasons, are unable to meet the submission date, please note the following procedures, as per the university’s Fit to Sit Policy, found at: http://www.rgu.ac.uk/about/academic-affairs/quality-assurance-and-regulations/academic- regulations-student-forms/academic-regulations-student-forms/ Please make sure to follow the instructions at the web address above.

PG students should submit their extension or deferral requests to the following email address: studentrequestabspg@rgu.ac.uk